Many vehicles are used over a wide range of vehicle speeds, including both forward and reverse movement. Some types of engines, however, are capable of operating efficiently only within a narrow range of speeds. Consequently, transmissions capable of efficiently transmitting power at a variety of speed ratios are frequently employed. Most vehicles today have an automatic transmission including several modes such as PARK, REVERSE, NEUTRAL, and DRIVE. The driver selects between the different modes using an input, e.g., a shifter, located in the passenger cabin. The transmission includes clutches and brakes operable to create one or more gear ratios associated with one or more of the modes. For example, the transmission may include five forward-drive gear ratios associated with DRIVE, a single reverse gear ratio associated with REVERSE, and one or more neutral states associated with NEUTRAL and PARK.
Referring to FIG. 8, a rotary gear shifter includes a dial that is turned to move the shifter between positions, such as PRND. The shifter is in electronic communication with a transmission and outputs a signal indicating a position of the dial. A controller associated with the transmission and the shifter commands the transmission to shift between various transmission modes according to the signal from the shifter. The shifter includes a mechanism for automatically rotating the dial when the position of the shifter is out of synchronization with the transmission.